Optimal strategies for corrective assembly approach applied to a high-quality relay production system

•A high-quality relay production system applied a matching method is modelled.•The production rate of products satisfying an assembly tolerance is formulated.•Optimization is considered to yield the maximum production rate.•Optimization presents optimal reprocessing machine selection and design strategies.•The reprocessing accuracy affects the maximum production rate.

In the assembly of high-quality products in a corrective assembly approach, measurement and reprocessing errors occur in the measuring and reprocessing stages, and these unexpected errors can lead to the erroneous selection of the reprocessing machine, and produce unsatisfactory products. In this paper, we consider the part flow in a high-quality relay production system applying the corrective assembly approach by incorporating machining, measurement and reprocessing errors simultaneously, and formulate the production rate of high-quality products satisfying the predetermined assembly tolerance. Optimization is used to yield the maximum production rate by using reprocessing machine selection and design strategies. The results indicate the following: (1) the proposed optimization methodology effectively yields the maximum production rate and presents the optimal selection range and the optimal adjustment size of the reprocessing machine, and (2) the reprocessing accuracy affects the maximum production rate but has little effect on the optimal selection range and the optimal adjustment size.